Dave's Story

Innovation in technology has always been an integral part of my career and personal interests. Over the years I’ve spent my time experimenting with new tech on home projects, working as a software engineer, and even starting up my own mobile software development business. When I joined the Boeing Vancouver team, I found a workplace that embraces my innovative nature, providing the resources I need to explore the world’s latest technologies and create products that could one day shape the future of aviation.

I joined Boeing Vancouver in 2015 as a Software Engineer working on mobile software development. The position was a great fit, as being a part of a company like Boeing brought me back to my roots as a private pilot and I had six years of experience running my own mobile software business to bring to the team. Being part of the Boeing Vancouver team also gave me access to a myriad of opportunities to develop my skills. In my spare time, I began to participate as a tech lead in Boeing Vancouver’s Special Interest Group (SIG) program - a Boeing Vancouver initiative that provides space and resources for employees to pursue personal interest in new technologies and innovation. Many of the projects my colleagues and I collaborated on in our SIGs were for our own learning and entertainment; however, as I spent more time in the program, I saw that some projects could actually hold a lot of potential for the aviation industry.

To capture this potential, a colleague and I started up Boeing Vancouver’s Emerging Technologies team in 2017, which I now head up as the team’s Lead Software Engineer. We explore everything from drones to blockchain to AR/VR, learning new technologies before they go mainstream and creating concepts and prototypes that could add significant business value for Boeing customers. A lot of the team’s inspiration comes from the innovation that happens in the SIG program, but we also have the freedom to invent and pitch our own projects, finding out how the world's latest technology can be used to improve the way we get things done. And as technology continues to evolve at lightning speed, there are countless opportunities for our team to create products the aviation industry doesn’t even know it needs yet.

Though the Emerging Technologies team has only been in operation for a short while, I’ve spent almost the entirety of my career at Boeing Vancouver innovating with technology. The company offers a variety of opportunities for both new and seasoned tech professionals to try something new, and has encouraged me to make innovation in technology my full-time job.